Anti-Inflammatory Drugs Could Raise Heart Attack Risk

Popular painkiller Vioxx was pulled from the shelves in 2004 over fears that it could cause heart attacks.

Now a new study out of Finland suggests that not only Vioxx but all nonsteroidal anti-inflammatory drugs (NSAIDs) seem to increase a person’s risk for heart attack.

This class of drugs includes popular painkillers like Aspirin and Advil, and taking one of those once in a while won’t cause much harm, but the recent report suggests NSAIDS, available both over the counter and by prescription, could raise your risk of heart attack by as much as 40 percent.

It’s important to note that this recent study looked at the pill-taking habits of just over 33,000 people in Finland between 2000 and 2003 who’d already suffered heart attacks. But experts still aren’t completely sure if it was the pills that raised the risk of heart attack since this was only a preliminary study.

Researchers found the risk decreased over time as the subjects stopped using NSAIDS.

There are other side effects linked to the use of this class of drugs, which include stomach ulcers, easy bruising or bleeding, and kidney problems.

If you are taking one of these medications, don’t stop without talking to your doctor first.


Here are a few ways you can minimize the side-effects from NSAIDs:

  • Rather than taking prescription-strength NSAIDs, consider lower-dose NSAIDs that are available over-the-counter. They include: Aspirin, Ibuprofen (Advil, Motrin IB), Naproxen (Aleve, Anaprox), and Ketoprofen (Oruvail)
  • Take NSAIDs with food or milk to reduce the risk of gastrointestinal side effects
  • Ask your doctor if you should take another medication to decrease gastrointestinal side effects
  • Look to alternatives like Acetaminophen (Tylenol, others), which isn’t an NSAID but does reduce pain and fever. It doesn’t reduce inflammation however.
  • Consider a newer type of NSAID that suppresses only the COX-2 enzyme as opposed to both the COX-2 and the COX-1 enzyme. COX-2-only inhibitors reportedly relieve pain but reduce the chance of stomach ulcers

Courtesy Mayo Clinic

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